Anaheim Ducks star forward Trevor Zegras came under fire online after he seemed to say something to upset Arizona Coyotes defenseman Troy Stecher in their game at Honda Center on Saturday.
With over six minutes left in the second period and the game tied at one apiece, Zegras cross-checked Coyotes’ forward Barrett Hayton in the back of the head while he was down, prompting a scuffle in the corner of the rink. As the dust settled, Stecher had a few words for Zegras, triggering an animated retort from the Anaheim star.
Zegras may have gone over the line with his trash talk, as Stecher jumped at his opponent and had to be restrained by officials as the pair jawed back and forth. The conversation continued long after Zegras was ushered to the penalty box, with Stecher visibly irritated by something Zegras said.
Zegras was given a two-minute minor and 10-minute misconduct on the play.
Stecher continued pleading with referees and even some Ducks players in between the benches, likely explaining what caused him to react the way he did.
As the clips made the rounds on social media, fans online began to speculate about what Zegras could possibly have said to upset Stecher so much. Many believed that the 21-year-old brought up Stecher’s father, who passed away in 2020 due to a complication from diabetes.
PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan reported Sunday that Zegras did not mention Stecher’s father in the scuffle, but that he did say something “very inappropriate”.
Zegras would add insult to injury before the night was over, scoring the game winning goal in overtime to secure the Ducks’ 2-1 win.
Zegras is tied with Troy Terry for the team scoring lead with 42 points in 50 games this season. Stecher has four points in 50 games with the Coyotes after signing a one-year contract in the offseason.
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